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Toronto criminal lawyers threaten boycott unless legal aid rates rise

Last Updated: Tuesday, June 2, 2009 | 8:14 AM ET

CBC News

Some criminal lawyers in Toronto say they will boycott major cases if they involve legal aid.

Frank Addario, head of the province's Criminal Lawyers Association, says lawyers with more than 10 years experience will stop accepting legal aid clients charged in homicide cases or guns and gangs investigations.

Addario said Monday that funding for legal aid is so low that many lawyers are forced to put in unpaid hours dealing with complex cases.

The province has awarded substantial increases to judges and Crown attorneys over the past few years, "but they haven't done the same for the defence," said Addario.

"The defence of criminal cases has been subsidized by defence lawyers. They're putting the social program of legal aid on their shoulders and carrying it."

The CLA warns that the disparity is creating an imbalance in the system by giving the Crown and wealthy defendants more legal resources than the poor.

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